Week 86: Fresh Pea Ravioli with Crispy Prosciutto

This week I discovered a fun new ingredient: wonton wrappers. How amazing are these little guys? I can't wait to experiment with filling them with anything and everything!

As convenient as the wonton wrappers were, there WAS a slight problem with them falling apart a bit while they were cooking. Perhaps cooking fewer at a time would help fix this issue.

If you know (the foodie side of) me at all, you would be surprised to hear me say this, but the prosciutto is what turned this dish from "fun and yummy" to "WOW and DELICIOUS". The salt and crisp was exactly what was needed to balance out the sweetness of the peas.

This recipe came from Claire Robinson (host of 5 Ingredient Fix). I should really try more of her recipes, because I love that they don't overwhelm you with a huge list of ingredients.

Year of Yum Rating: 4 STARS

INGREDIENTS
-2 tablespoons lemon infused olive oil, plus more for drizzling (we just whisked together some olive oil and lemon juice)
-4 slices prosciutto, cut into thin strips
-12 ounces fresh whole milk ricotta
-1 1/2 cups fresh shelled English peas, plus more for garnish (we used frozen...shh...)
-Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
24 to 36 square wonton wrappers

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

Heat the oil in a skillet, over medium heat. Add the prosciutto and cook until crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels. Set aside.

Lightly oil a serving plate with some of the prosciutto crisping oil and put it in a warm oven until ready to serve.

Drain the ricotta of excess moisture in a fine mesh sieve for 10 to 15 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add the peas and blanch them until just tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the peas to an ice water bath, to shock and stop the cooking and preserve the color. Keep the pot of hot water on the stove to cook the ravioli.

Transfer the peas to a food processor and puree with the drained ricotta and salt and pepper, to taste. Put a teaspoon (or more depending on wonton size) of the pea mixture in the center of each wonton wrapper; avoid overfilling. Dampen the inside outer edges of wonton with water and fold, pinching around the borders to ensure that the ravioli is well sealed. Repeat with the remaining wonton wrappers and filling.

Bring the pot of hot water to a boil over medium heat.

Drop the ravioli, in batches, into the boiling water and cook until tender and the wrapper becomes slightly translucent, about 3 minutes. With a slotted spoon or skimmer, transfer the cooked ravioli to the lightly oiled serving plate. Drizzle with lemon infused olive oil and top with crispy prosciutto and a few peas. Serve immediately.

Week 71: Lemon Ricotta Gnocchi

This recipe for gnocchi intrigued me because it didn't contain any potato. I'm also a huge fan of lemon in pasta, so that always catches my eye.

We had to change the recipe as we went, because the dough was way too sticky with the amount of flour that it called for. The recipe below reflects the recipe as we made it (more or less).

Next I want to try this. Pan-frying gnocchi sounds pretty much like perfection.

I wanted to try to make a light tomato sauce to top the gnocchi. I don't know that it turned out to be very "light," but it sure was yummy, cheap, and easy! Now I'm motivated to try to make more of my own sauce, and to experiment with different flavors.

Year of Yum Rating: 4 STARS

INGREDIENTS
For the gnocchi:
1 1/2 15-oz containers of whole milk ricotta cheese
2 cups of flour (give or take...we just added flour until the dough was easy enough to work with)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 egg
zest of 2 small-ish lemons

For the sauce:
1 large can crushed tomatoes
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup red wine
1 large garlic clove, crushed
several basil leaves, roughly chopped
salt to taste
red pepper flakes to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Start the sauce by just throwing all the ingredients in a large, shallow pot, and allow to simmer while you're working your gnocchi magic.

2. Spread the flour out on a clean, dry work surface. Place the ricotta, salt, black pepper, egg, and zest on top of the flour and lightly knead it with your hands bringing together all the ingredients. Gently knead the dough into an 10-inch log and allow it to rest a few minutes.

2. Lightly dust a clean, dry work surface with flour. Cut the log into four equal pieces. Gingerly, lightly, roll each piece into a 1-inch thick piece of rope. Cut the gnocchi into 1/2-inch pillows.

To Cook: Place gnocchi in boiling salted water. When the gnocchi have floated to the top, allow them to cook for another two minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon and serve.